EARLS Barton Library has come through a tempestuous 16 months, but it finally seems as though a solution to maintaining the services offered in the library to our village is drawing near.
With amazing support from the residents during this period it has become apparent how highly valued the local library is – not just as a lender of books but as a community centre for young and old.
It is likely that from now on the library will be entirely run by volunteers with managerial oversight provided by Northamptonshire County Council. The Parish Council is supportive of this arrangement and have offered some financial assistance towards the running costs.
The main question still to be resolved is the cost of the building. The county council were insisting that the library needed to be purchased for £275,000 or rented at a high annual cost. Neither of these options is considered acceptable, as the general feeling is that residents have paid, through their rates – which then became council tax, for this building many times over since it was erected in 1968.
Talks are ongoing to see how the matter can be settled.